2017 Bordeaux Harvest Will be 50% Smaller Due to Frost

Bordeaux lovers may want to stock up on 2015 and 2016 Bordeaux while supplies remain plentiful — 2017 isn’t shaping up too well. Via multiple news sources including Business Insider, frost has caused the Bordeaux region to lose an estimated 50 percent of its buds. For us wine drinkers, that will equate to approximately 350 million fewer bottles.

The frost spell ravaged France in the last two days of April, damaging crops in pretty much every wine region. Major regions hit include Bordeaux, Champagne, Burgundy, Loire, Cognac, and Languedoc. Other European wine regions were also impacted, including Germany, Italy, and Switzerland.

Via Bloomberg, frost doesn’t necessarily equate to worse wine — just less of it. The 1945 and 1961 harvests also suffered frost, but the remaining grapes were ultimately able to achieve ideal conditions for winemaking.

Given the news, we can probably expect smaller harvests across other countries as well. While France was the hardest hit, frost is bound to impact the prices of other European wines as well.